BBC America top cable network with college grads
- From: David <dimlan17@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 03 May 2008 00:44:35 -0400
from variety
BBC America captures Saturdays
Net to launch 'Primeval' this summer
By JON WEISMAN
For quite a while now, networks have abandoned Saturday nights like an
old couch by the curb.
But Saturdays are one of several reasons for BBC America to celebrate
its 10th anniversary this year. By counterprogramming with some of its
best fare, the British offshoot has made Saturdays its most popular
primetime night.
"The reason we program it so heavily is because American television
has given up on Saturday, so we know there's a much greater audience
to aggregate," says BBC Worldwide America president Garth Ancier.
BBCA's headline summer show, "Primeval," a dinosaurs-in-the-present
yarn, will air on Saturdays beginning Aug. 2. It arrives on the heels
of such series and miniseries as "Torchwood," "Robin Hood," "Hex" and
"Jekyll" that have transformed BBCA into a destination net.
"It's a huge hit in Britain," Ancier says of "Primeval." "Knock on
steel, it'll do as well as 'Torchwood,' 'Doctor Who' or 'Robin Hood.'
"We look for shows that we think we can build our audience on in the
U.S. (When) you put a show on BBC America, it's watched by people who
are intellectually curious."
BBCA has banked on that attraction ever since it debuted in 1998 as
sort of a famous obscurity: Most had heard of the BBC, but few knew
how it would translate on American shores.
"I think we were starting off in a better place than (other new
networks) because the BBC brand was known," says Jo Petherbridge,
executive VP of communications for BBC Worldwide America. "Most people
thought of it as a news brand. But at least the letters BBC had some
resonance in the marketplace."
One chit that BBCA could chat about from the get-go was a welcome
reception from the critics, who were familiar with BBC programming
that aired on PBS and championed BBCA's offerings, even when some were
obscure to auds. They provided much of BBCA's message to the outside
world during the initial years, when the network eschewed commercial
marketing and focused on gaining distribution. From an initial foray
into 250,000 homes, BBCA expanded its reach to more than 32 million
homes within four years.
That set the stage for BBCA's major graduation into the public
consciousness with "The Office," starting in 2003. The raves and
ensuing word of mouth drew auds in for the Ricky Gervais/ Stephen
Merchant gem while introducing viewers to other programs on the
channel, from primetime dramas and comedies to news and trendy
nonfiction shows such as "Top Gear," "Kitchen Nightmares" and
"Changing Rooms."
The challenge for Ancier, who arrived at BBCA in February 2007 after
becoming the first executive after Fred Silverman to run three network
entertainment divisions (NBC, Fox and the WB), has been to suss out
which shows will make that leap better than others.
"There are probably huge hits in the U.K. that are not quite
aspirational enough for Americans," Ancier says. "Americans tend to be
more optimistic. ... We have episodes of 'EastEnders,' but we know
that show is a little bit depressing. We used to run 'EastEnders' on
the network and it didn't do particularly well."
On the other hand, some BBCA series have been so successful with
American auds, they've often been remade into American series
themselves. "Changing Rooms" became "Trading Spaces" for TLC, while
"Nightmares" made a fairly straightforward transition to Fox. BBCA's
other summer premiere, romantic comedy "Gavin & Stacey," has already
been purchased as a format by NBC, which is hoping to repeat its
success with "The Office."
According to Nielsen, BBCA is the top-rated basic cable network in
primetime among age 25-54 college graduates. As it heads into its next
10 years, BBCA can make an argument that it is the thinking viewer's
network.
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